The Half Assini magistrate court in the Western Region has granted GH¢500,000 bail to Gideon Konibah, the Jomoro Constituency Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), and his purported accomplice, with two sureties to be justified for alleged fraud.
Konibah and Augustine Ofori Andoh, Deputy Constituency Secretary of the party, are facing a provisional charge of defrauding under false pretence. Their pleas have not been taken and would reappear on Wednesday, April 12.
Prosecuting, Detective Sergeant Richard Amoah said from June to August last year, the accused persons collected GH¢87,000 from 13 fishermen in the area under the pretext of supplying them with outboard motors but failed to do so.
He said when the accused persons could not provide the motors, the victims made frantic efforts to retrieve their monies but without success and therefore, lodged a complaint with the police, leading to their arrests.
“And so they were given some time to refund the money but they could not get the fishermen’s money back hence, their arrest”, a source indicated.
DAILY GUIDE has gathered that the two leading members of the Jomoro NDC were placed in police custody over the alleged fraud.
The District Chief Fisherman, Emmanuel Odwiri, confirmed the story in an interview with journalists at Half-Assini on Friday.
He intimated that the two were arrested after he had lodged an official complaint to the police at Agona Nkwanta in the Ahanta West District.
He stated that the two were picked up by the Agona Nkwanta police who later handed them over to their Half-Assini counterparts for investigations.
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